Training Provider Governance and Who’s Who in the VET Zoo

1

Nigel HaywoodManager

Resources Industry Training Council of Western AustraliaResources RTO Association Inc. Inaugural Conference

Yeppoon, Queensland 18-19 October 2012

Presentation Overview

2

• Who is the RITC?

• A check on the environment…..

• What do we mean by governance?

• You’ve got to have standards…

• NSSC review

• Governance – a west coast perspective

• The changing world of VET

Who is the RITC?

3

• One of 10 Training Councils in Western Australia

• Joint venture between the Chamber of Minerals and Energy (CME) and the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association (APPEA)

• Established in 2009

• Covers the mining, oil and gas and downstream process

manufacturing industries

• Focus on workforce development issues

4

A check on the environment

•Two words…….

complex and turbulent

5

What do we mean by governance?

Good Governance = Good Business

6

What do we mean by governance?

“ the person or persons (or committees or departments etc) who make up a body for the purpose of administering something. The act of governing: exercising authority; responsibility”

Free Dictionary

7

What do we mean by governance?

“ the framework of rules and practices by which a board of directors ensures accountability, fairness and transparency in a company’s relationship with all its stakeholders”

BusinessDictionary.com

8

What do we mean by governance?

“ the framework of rules and relationships, systems and processes within in and by which authority is exercised and controlled in operations” it encompasses the mechanisms by which companies, and those in control, are held to account. Corporate governance influences how the objectives of the company are set and achieved, how risk is monitored and assessed and how performance is optimised.

ASX Corporate Governance Council

9

What do we mean by governance?

“ the national vocational education and training system sets clear expectations through legislation, standards and requirements for registered training organisations to take responsibility for the quality of their qualifications and services”

Australian Skills Quality Authority

10

You’ve got to have standards…

• Once again a number of definitions:

• “the degree of excellence required for a particular purpose”

• “the minimum of material comfort with which a person or class may reasonably be content”

• Do existing standards promote excellence or are they

setting a “minimum”?

11

•ASQA Standards for Initial Registration - SNR 7

•AQTF Conditions of Registration – Condition 1• Introduction of “fit and proper person” requirements

You’ve got to have standards…

• Commissioned by COAG Standing Council on Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment (SCOTESE).

• Submissions sought between May and July 2012 – 114 submissions received

• “strong appetite for change amongst all stakeholder groups, including RTOs” – Ithaca Group analysis of submissions report – August 2012

12

National Skills Standards Council (NSSC) review

13

• Greater emphasis on nationally consistent high quality training and assessment services rather than business processes.

• Consistent application and interpretation of the standards

• Issue of excellence and not a minimum standard

• Use of “plain English” in the standards

• Data issues

National Skills Standards Council (NSSC) review

14

Governance – a west-coast perspective

• “Governance Framework for State Training Providers” developed by Department of Training and Workforce Development

• Rationale to allow State Training Providers in Western Australia to operate effectively in a competitive training market

15

Governance A west-coast perspective

Source: DTWD Governance Framework for State Training Providers

16

• Comprises 9 principles:

• Government and public sector relationship

• Management and oversight

• Organisational structure

• Operations

• Ethics and integrity

• People

• Finance

• Communication

• Risk management

GovernanceA west-coast perspective

17

GovernanceA west-coast perspective

Source: DTWD Governance Framework for State Training Providers

18

• What the auditors have said….

• “No evidence the registered training organisation uses a

systematic and continuous improvement approach to the

management of operations”

• “No evidence that strategies for training and assessment used

have been developed through effective consultation with

industry”

GovernanceA west-coast perspective

19

GovernanceA west-coast perspective

• What the auditors have said….

• “I have come across many instances where senior

management have no idea about their responsibilities as an

RTO let alone knowledge of the VET sector. I believe this is the

reason why they are often unavailable for audit in case they get

asked a question or two. The flow on effect is that often the

RTO is not resourced adequately with either funding, people,

facilities and equipment to enable it to function the way it

should”

• The only thing that is certain is change.

• We all have a responsibility to keep up to date under governance arrangements and standards (SNR 7.3)

20

The changing world of VET

21

The changing world of VET

22

The changing world of VET

23

The changing world of VET A Western Australian perspective